Scientists at a Danish hospital have found that yellow marks on the eyelid are a predictor of heart attack. The study showed that patients with yellow marks on their eyelids were 48 percent more likely to have a heart attack, 39 percent more likely to develop heart disease and 14 percent more likely to die within a 10-year period. The yellow spots, called xanthelasma, are soft deposits of cholesterol, and a sign of heart disease. Arcus corneae, a white or gray ring around the cornea, is also caused by deposits of cholesterol but is not a predictor of heart attack.
Xanthelasma are found equally in men and women but are a better predictor of heart disease in women because of their lower overall risk. A study of nearly 13,000 people indicated that the yellow blobs predicted risk of heart attack, heart disease, atherosclerosis and death independently of well-established cardiovascular risk factors such as cholesterol levels, smoking, obesity or gender. Since the spots do not affect vision, patients usually get the spots removed by their dermatologist instead of being treated for their increased risk of cardiovascular disease. This finding could prove particularly beneficial for diagnosing patients in societies with limited access to medical laboratories for measuring cholesterol levels and other lipid profiles.
-compiled by Amanda Gellett
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